THIS WEEK
In hot pursuit of a berth in the Northern Sun men's basketball tournament, the University of Mary closes out the 2022-23 regular season with a split schedule featuring a game at home and away. Senior Night is set for Thursday, February 16, when UMary hosts Northern State University in the final home game of the season at the McDowell Activity Center. The Marauders will honor their five seniors starting at 5:15 pm with tip off to follow at 5:30 pm. The Marauders then hit the road for the regular season finale on Saturday, February 18, at MSU Moorhead. Game time is 3:30 pm at Alex Nemzek Fieldhouse in Moorhead, MN.
 
PLAYOFF PUSH
Two games remain in the regular season for the Marauders and UMary is gunning for a Northern Sun playoff berth. The top six teams in each of the 8-team NSIC North and South divisions make the tournament, based on a team's overall NSIC record. The top two teams in each the North and South divisions earn byes into the NSIC quarterfinals. The 3^rd place team in both divisions will host the 6^th place team in the opposite division with the 4^th place teams in each division hosting the 5^th place squad. (NOTE Per the NSIC Tournament Guide | Host rights for the first round of the NSIC Basketball Tournament will go to the team with the best overall conference record. The bracket will continue to be seeded North/South as it has been in recent years. If there is a tie in the overall record, the game will be hosted by the higher (better) seed unless the lower (worse) seeded team beat the higher seeded team on the road during the regular season.)
 
Three teams are in the running for the final two NSIC North tournament berths. UMary is tied for 5^th with Minot State (both 7-13) and are a game in front of St. Cloud State (6-14) with two games remaining. Minot State currently has the tie-breaking edge over UMary based on record in the North Division. The Marauders and the Huskies own the same divisional record. The Marauders guarantee a playoff spot with two wins, or at least mirroring the Huskies weekend (equal number of wins).  
 
The NSIC tournament opens at home sites on Wednesday, February 22. The NSIC Basketball Tournament then moves to the Pentagon in Sioux Falls, SD, with the men's quarterfinals February 25-26, the semifinals February 27 and the championship game February 28.
 
SENIOR NIGHT
The Marauders will honor five scholar-athletes on Senior Night when UMary hosts Northern State University on Thursday, February 16. The recognition begins at 5:15 pm with tipoff following at 5:30 pm. The five seniors are Lucas Mayer, Logan Nagorski, Veljko Radakovic, Gertautas Urbonavicius and Kam Warrens. The Kevin Olson Scholarship Award will also be presented.
 
LAST TIME OUT
After picking up weekend splits the last three weekends, the Marauders dropped a pair of road games… Zyon Smith dropped 14 points in an 83-68 loss at Minnesota Duluth. Veljko Radakovic added a career-high 11 points and Kam Warrens had 10 points and six rebounds… Warrens had 18 points and six rebounds and Smith added 16 points in an 80-70 loss at St. Cloud State.
 
RECORDS
The Marauders enter the weekend 11-13 overall and 7-13 in the NSIC. UMary is 12^th overall in the NSIC and 5^th in the North… Northern State is 21-5 overall and 17-3 in the NSIC (1^st overall, 1^st NSIC North).. MSU Moorhead is 20-6 overall and 15-5 in the NSIC (2^nd overall, 2^nd NSIC North).  
 
STEPPING FORWARD
In his third season with the Marauders, Kam Warrens continues to take impressive forward strides. After transferring to UMary from UMary from Yuba Community College, he averaged 4.5 points/game during the abbreviated 2020-21 COVID season before jumping to 8.7 ppg for the 2021-22 season. This season Warrens averages a team-leading 13.2 points/game while shooting 47.2% from the floor. He's making 39% of his treys and 85% of his free throws. Warrens also grabs 5.9 rebounds/game. Five times Warrens has cracked 20 points in a game and has led the team in scoring nine times. 
 
600
After cracking the 500 point club in a career-best 26 points at Augustana earlier this season, Kam Warrens cracked 600 points in his last game at St. Cloud State. The senior has scored 616 points in his three seasons at UMary, covering 65 games… Gertautas Urbonavicius is closing in on 500 points at UMary. In his second season at UMary Urbonavicius is at 475 points with Marauders over 47 games.
 
HISTORY LESSON – MARAUDERS v. WOLVES
The Marauders trail the Wolves 35-13 in the all-time series… UMary and NSU split their series in 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 before the Wolves swept the series the last four seasons… The Wolves have won the last 12 meetings… UMary last defeated Northern State 77-75 on Dec. 3, 2016, in Aberdeen, SD, as Bryan Jefferson scored 17 points and Ricky Suggs added 14 off the bench… The Marauders last home win was a 60-58 victory on Dec. 4, 2015. Marquealis Edwards led UMary with 16 points and four steals… LAST MEETING Kam Warrens scored 14 points and Zyon Smith 13 in a 79-60 UMary loss at Northern State on December 1, 2022.
 
HISTORY LESSON - MARAUDERS v. DRAGONS
The Marauders trail the Dragons 24-17 in the all-time series… Since joining the NCAA and NSIC, UMary is 12-22 against MSUM… The Marauder have won five of the last ten games… 6 of the last 10 games were played in Moorhead… The Marauders won the first conference match-up 75-72 at MSUM on January 16, 2007… The Dragons followed with five straight wins, including an overtime victory, one win by one point and another by two points… The Marauders snapped the Dragons streak 74-58 at home on Jan. 30, 2010, the first of five straight UMary wins that concluded with a 72-51 win over 19th ranked MSUM on Jan. 7, 2012, at the MAC… The Marauders snapped an 8-game losing streak to the Dragons with a 77-73 upset win at 3rd ranked MSUM on January 8, 2016… LAST MEETING Kam Warrens led the Marauders with 12 points and Deven Franks scored 11 off the bench as the Marauders dropped an 88-55 home game to the Dragons on December 3, 2022.
 
BALANCE
The Marauders feature six players scoring between 13.1 ppg and 6.7 ppg, with five players averaging at least 8.1 ppg. Kam Warrens leads the way at 13.2 ppg… Treyton Mattern is close behind at 11.5 ppg… Zyon Smith averages 11.3 ppg in his first season at UMary… Gertautas Urbonavicius checks in at 9.9 ppg with Lucas Mayer at 8.1 ppg and Jeremiah Jones at 6.7 ppg. 
OPPORTUNITY
With injuries sidelining Gertautas Urbonavicius and Lucas Mayer in recent games, Ty Rogers has taken advantage of increased playing time. The freshman forward has started the last four games and has scored at least five points each time out. He posted a career-high 15 points against Bemidji State and is averaging three rebounds/game… Fellow freshman forward Xavier Lewis also has taken advantage of increased playing time. Averaging over 15 minutes/game, he is averaging nearly 6.0 points and over 3.0 rebounds per game while making 9-of-11 shots and 5-of-6 free throws.
 
HELPING HAND
The Marauders are averaging 14.7 assists per game to rank 5^th in the NSIC.  
 
PICKPOCKET
Freshman Jeremiah Jones is 9^th in the NSIC in steals (1.3/game). Treyton Mattern is 25^th in steals at 1.1/game.
 
FOR THREE!
The Marauders are knocking down 36.5% of their 3-point attempts this season to rank 5^th in the NSIC. Opponents are connecting on just 33.8% of their attempts from behind the arc, the 7^th best defensive effort in the NSIC… Gertautas Urbonavicius (20-of-49) leads the way at 41% with Kam Warrens at 39% (39-of-99) and Gunner Swanson at 39% (13-of-33)… A hot run by Treyton Mattern has the junior guard up to 39.1% (36-of-92) on the season, making 17-of-32 over the last seven games... Kam Warrens and Zyon Smith are tied for 24^th in the NSIC at 1.6 treys/games.
 
TAKING TURNS
Seven different Marauders have led UMary in scoring this season: Kam Warrens (9x), Treyton Mattern (5x), Zyon Smith (4x), Gertautas Urbonavicius (3x), Lucas Mayer (3x), Jeremiah Jones and Ty Rogers.
 
SHARE THE LOAD
The Marauders rank third in the NSIC in rebounds/game at 36.8 and it's a team effort. Kam Warrens leads UMary in rebounds/game (5.9) and is 13^th in the league, followed Jeremiah Jones (5.7) at #18 and Gertautas Urbonavicius (5.4) at #23.
 
SECOND CHANCE CITY
The Marauders are 4^th in offensive rebounds at 10.3. Lucas Mayer leads the second chance efforts with 2.5 offensive boards/game, fifth-most in the NSIC.
 
DOUBLING DOWN
Halfway through his freshman season, Jeremiah Jones has two double doubles and has had 10 or more rebounds in a game three times. He had 15 points and 16 rebounds against Minot State. In the Florida Tech Thanksgiving Tournament championship game Jones dropped 11 points and ten rebounds. The guard from South Holland, IL, has also been a tremendous distributor with eight assists against Presentation and seven against PR-Bayamon… For the season he is averaging 6.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists. He is shooting 77.1% (27-of-35) at the free throw line… Jones leads the Marauders in steals and is second in rebounds and assists… He ranks 18^th in the NSIC in rebounding, 18^th in assists and 9^th in steals (1.3/game).
 
DOUBLE DOUBLE
The Marauders have registered five double doubles this season:

• Jeremiah Jones (15 points, 16 rebounds vs. Minot State 11/22/22)
• Jeremiah Jones (11 points, 10 rebounds vs. Puerto Rico-Bayamon 11/26/22)
• Kam Warrens (21 points, 12 rebounds at Bemidji State 12/30/21)
• Gertautas Urbonavicius (16 points, 10 rebounds vs. SMSU 1/6/23)
• Lucas Mayer (18 points, 16 rebounds vs. Minnesota Crookston 2/3/23)

 
20+
The Marauders have had several players crack 20 points in a game this season:

• Treyton Mattern (20 points vs. Presentation 11/18/22)
• Lucas Mayer (21 points vs. Dickinson State 12/6/22)
• Gertautas Urbonavicius (23 points vs. St. Cloud State 12/9/22)
• Kam Warrens (20 points vs. St. Cloud State 12/9/22)
• Kam Warrens (20 at Minot State 12/17/22)
• Zyon Smith (22 points at Minot State 12/17/22)
• Kam Warrens (21 points at Bemidji State 12/30/22)
• Treyton Mattern (21 points at Minnesota Crookston 12/31/22)
• Kam Warrens (21 points vs. Sioux Falls 1/7/23)
• Zyon Smith (20 points vs. Sioux Falls 1/7/23)
• Kam Warrens (26 points at Augustana 1/13/23)
• Treyton Mattern (20 points at Minnesota State 1/27/23)
• Treyton Mattern (20 points at Concordia-St. Paul 1/28/23)

 
CENTURY STANDOUTS
The Marauders start a pair of Bismarck Century High School graduates in forward Lucas Mayer and Treyton Mattern. Both are second generation Marauders as their fathers played for UMary. Mayer's father Dave played on the Marauders 1981-82 Men's Basketball Hall of Fame team that set a school record for wins. Mattern's mother (Gerene Saylor Mattern) is a member of the Marauders Hall of Fame for her exploits on the track. And Mattern's father, Darren, coached both Mayer and Mattern at Century HS.
 
DEBUTS
Seven Marauders made their UMary debuts in the season opener against Presentation. Zyon Smith (Highland CC) transferred to UMary before the start of the season. After redshirting last season for UMary, Gunner Swanson came off the bench for the Marauders. Freshmen Marquel Saleek, Jeremiah Jones, Xavier Lewis and Ty Rogers all made their collegiate debuts this season.
 
RETURNING
The Marauders have six players back who saw considerable action last season, including four from the starting rotation.

• Sr. F Gertautas Urbonavicius started all 27 games and was second on the team in scoring at 10.8 ppg… averaged 4.8 rebounds/game… shot 47%from the floor and 41% on treys.
• Sr. F Kam Warrens started 26 of 27 games… averaged 8.7 points/game and team-high 6.1 rebounds/game
• Sr. F Lucas Mayer started last 12 games of the season after returning from injury… averaged 6.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game… shot team-leading 68.8% from the floor
• Jr. G Treyton Mattern started 14 of the 18 games he played… averaged 3.7 points and 2.8 rebounds/game… 3^rd on team with 1.7 assists/game.
• Sr. F Veljko Radakovic was a key reserve for the Marauders on the front line, playing in 19 games. He averaged 2.5 ppg.
• Jr. G Deven Franks saw significant minutes in the back court last season, playing in 18 games and starting three games… Averaged 2.4 ppg.
• Soph. F Liam Dougherty was limited to six games as a freshman.
• Fr. G Gunner Swanson redshirted last season at UMary

 
NEW
Zyon Smith lead a group of seven new players for the Marauders, six of whom are freshmen… Smith averaged 14.2 ppg and shot over 43% from the field for Highland Community College last season to earn 2^nd team Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference honors.
 
Freshmen for 2022-23 includes guards Colton Hall, Jeremiah Jones and Marquel Saleek and forwards Xavier Lewis, Payton Mogire and Ty Rogers.
 
YEAR TWO
Head coach Jack Nelson returns for his season with the Marauders after leading UMary to their best conference record since 2017. Nelson directed the Marauders to their first Northern Sun tournament road victory with an 82-70 win at Winona State to send UMary to the quarterfinals and a trip to the Sanford Pentagon. During the regular season the Marauders defeated #6 University of Minnesota Duluth 75-71, the highest ranked NCAA team UMary has beaten at home. Nelson recruited and coached Kai Huntsberry, the 2021-22 NSIC Newcomer of the Year and a 1^st team all-conference selection who broke the NSIC tournament record for 3s in a game with eight.
 
DIAL IN TO 710 AM FOX SPORTS
Listen to "Voice of the Marauders" Jesse Rostvedt call all Marauders Northern Sun games and select conference contests on 710 AM Fox Sports.
 
LIVE STATS AND WEBCASTS
Links to radio broadcasts, webstreams and live stats are found at www.GoUMary.com/coverage
 
TICKETS
Game tickets for Marauders athletics are available online at www.UMaryTickets.com and at the gate for all UMary athletics

• Adults | $10 + fees online and $15 (CASH ONLY) at the gate
• Seniors (65+) and youth 13-18 | $5 + fees online and $10 (CASH ONLY) at the gate
• Children 12 and under accompanied by an adult | Free
• Children 12 and under with no adult present| $5
• UMary students and faculty and staff with their MCard and youth 12 and younger are admitted free

 
Please note that ticket sales at the gate are CASH ONLY purchases. Fans receive a discounted rate on tickets when purchased online at www.umarytickets.com than at the gate. Fans are also able to purchase tickets using credit and debit cards when ordering online while sales at the ticket booth are cash only.
 
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